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Annenberg/CPBProfessional Development Workshop Guide

TeachingMulticulturalLiteratureA Workshop for the Middle GradesAn eight-part professional development workshop for middle gradeEnglish language arts and humanities teachers

Produced by Thirteen/WNET New York

Teaching Multicultural Literature: A Workshop for the Middle Grades

is produced byThirteen/WNET New York

© 2005 The Annenberg FoundationAll rights reserved.ISBN: 1-57680-772-X

Funding forTeaching Multicultural Literature: A Workshop for the Middle Gradesis provided by Annenberg/CPB.

Annenberg/CPB, a unit of The Annenberg Foundation, uses media and telecommunications to advance excellentteaching in American schools. Annenberg/CPB funds educational series and teacher professional developmentworkshops for the Annenberg/CPB Channel, The Channel is distributed free by satellite to schools and other edu-cational and community organizations nationwide, and streamed via broadband on the Web.

The notable series, workshops, and activities of Annenberg/CPB include American Passages: A Literary Survey;Artifacts & Fiction: Workshop in American Literature; Conversations in Literature; Developing Writers: A Workshop forHigh School Teachers; Engaging With Literature workshop and library; English Composition: Writing for an Audience;The Expanding Canon: Teaching Multicultural Literature in High School; In Search of the Novel; Literary Visions; MakingMeaning in Literature workshop and library; Signature: Contemporary Writers; Voices & Visions; and Write in theMiddle: A Workshop for Middle School Teachers.

To purchase copies of our videos and guides, or to learn more about our other professional development mate-rials and the Annenberg/CPB Channel, contact us by phone, by mail, or on the Web.

1-800-LEARNER®

P.O. Box 2345S. Burlington, VT 05407-2345

[email protected]

www.learner.org

Table of Contents

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1About the Workshop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1

Workshop Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Helpful Hints for Facilitators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Materials Needed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5

About the Contributors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6

Workshop 1. Engagement and Dialogue: Julia Alvarez, James McBride, Lensey Namioka, and more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Workshop 2. Engagement and Dialogue: Judith Ortiz Cofer and Nikki Grimes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15

Workshop 3. Research and Discovery: Shirley Sterling and Laura Tohe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

Workshop 4. Research and Discovery: Edwidge Danticat, An Na, Laurence Yep, and more . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Workshop 5. Historical and Cultural Context: Christopher Paul Curtis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Workshop 6. Historical and Cultural Context: Langston Hughes and Christopher Moore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

Workshop 7. Social Justice and Action: Alma Flor Ada, Pam Muñoz Ryan, and Paul Yee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35

Workshop 8. Social Justice and Action: Joseph Bruchac and Francisco Jiménez . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39

Appendix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43Notes on Teaching Multicultural Literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45

Workshop Reading List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47

Credits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49

Teaching Multicultural Literature - 1 - Introduction

OverviewTeaching Multicultural Literature: A Workshop for the Middle Grades explores a wide range of works, instruc-tional strategies, and resources.

In eight one-hour videos, teachers from across the country model approaches that make multicultural literaturemeaningful for students in grades five to eight. As units unfold over time, students engage in critical discussionsof race, class, and social justice that inspire them to take action for change. The featured teachers, along withleading educators, provide reflection and commentary throughout the programs. Authors share informationabout their writings through interviews and classroom visits.

The Web site supplements the video content with author biographies; synopses of the works; summaries of thevideo lessons; information on implementing the teaching strategies; student work samples; interviews withauthors, teachers, and commentators; annotated bibliographies; and selected short works of literature featured inthe workshop. The workshop guide includes discussion questions, activities, assignments, and guidance for facil-itating professional development.

Workshop Descriptions

Workshop 1. Engagement and Dialogue: Julia Alvarez, James McBride, Lensey Namioka,and moreIn New York City, Carol O’Donnell and her seventh-grade students explore themes of multiple worlds and dualidentities. They read poetry by Diana Chang and Naomi Shihab Nye; James McBride’s memoir The Color of Water;and essays and short stories by Gish Jen, Khoi T. Luu, Lensey Namioka, and Julia Alvarez; and watch Tina Lee per-form a monologue. O’Donnell uses historical documents and a documentary video about the U.S. Census to pro-vide context for the works. Through a series of innovative drama, role play, and writing activities, the studentsexamine the social and cultural experiences of the characters and reflect on their own definitions and experiencesof identity.

Workshop 2. Engagement and Dialogue: Judith Ortiz Cofer and Nikki GrimesThe program begins with a profile of the writer Judith Ortiz Cofer and then moves to Vista, California, where AkikoMorimoto and her eighth-grade students read short stories by Ortiz Cofer. They respond personally to the works,examine the author’s use of figurative language, and then make intertextual connections with books they’ve readthroughout the school year. In a culminating project, the students create their own visual symbols to representthe characters and events in the text. They then explore works by Nikki Grimes and examine her craft as a writer.Grimes visits the classroom, answers questions about her work, and attends an after-school reading of studentpoetry.

Workshop 3. Research and Discovery: Shirley Sterling and Laura ToheAt the Skokomish reservation in Washington State, Sally Brownfield and her eighth-grade students study the lit-erature and issues related to the Indian boarding school program through community involvement and self-examination. Brownfield begins with her students’ questions and supports the students through a cycle ofinvestigation, discussion, presentation, and reflection as they seek answers. The students use Shirley Sterling’snovel My Name Is Seepeetza and the poetry of Laura Tohe as lenses through which to explore topics of theirchoosing. The class visits the Skokomish Tribal Center to interview tribal elders about the impact of the residen-tial boarding program on the community. Author Shirley Sterling visits the class and answers students’ questionsrelated to her novel, her life, and their research topics.

About the Workshop

Introduction - 2 - Teaching Multicultural Literature

Workshop 4. Research and Discovery: Edwidge Danticat, An Na, Laurence Yep, and moreIn Clayton, Missouri, Kathryn Mitchell Pierce’s sixth-grade students read works that explore issues of historical andcontemporary immigration. Pierce uses “text sets” of multicultural picture books, poetry, and nonfiction to intro-duce the students to a wide range of perspectives and to set the stage for their novel study. The students choose,and then discuss in literature groups, novels by An Na, Edwidge Danticat, Walter Dean Myers, Pam Muñoz Ryan,and Laurence Yep. In culminating presentations, they synthesize themes and pose thought-provoking questionsthat invite others to examine these novels in new ways. This program features author profiles of Laurence Yep andEdwidge Danticat.

Workshop 5. Historical and Cultural Context: Christopher Paul CurtisLaina Jones and her sixth-grade students in Dorchester, Massachusetts explore The Watsons Go to Birmingham—1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis. Jones uses nonfiction, documentary film, and historical photographs to contex-tualize the events in the novel and the civil rights movement. The students make deep connections to theliterature through drama, poetry, and creative writing activities. Curtis visits the classroom, addresses questions,and leads the students in a writing workshop. The unit culminates with a service learning project in which the stu-dents create children’s books about the civil rights movement and share them with elementary school children.

Workshop 6. Historical and Cultural Context: Langston Hughes and Christopher MooreStanlee Brimberg and his seventh-grade students in New York City study the recently discovered African BurialGround in Manhattan through factual texts, video, art, photography, and poetry. The students interview writer,historian, and documentary filmmaker Christopher Moore to learn more about the experiences of African slavesin early New York. They examine the works of Langston Hughes and drawing on all of the texts, write their ownpoetry and engage in peer review. As a culminating activity, the students take a field trip to the African BurialGround Memorial, then design their own postage stamps to commemorate the site.

Workshop 7. Social Justice and Action: Alma Flor Ada, Pam Muñoz Ryan, and Paul YeeLaura Alvarez and her bilingual fourth- and fifth-grade students in Oakland, California examine different perspec-tives and experiences of immigrants, and then formulate and defend positions on issues with which they connectpersonally. They examine My Name Is María Isabel by Alma Flor Ada, Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan, andTales From Gold Mountain by Paul Yee, and compare characters’ hopes, expectations, and actual experiences uponarriving in the United States. The students conduct research, which includes interviews with family members andnonfiction readings. Alma Flor Ada visits the classroom, answers questions about her novel, and facilitates a dis-cussion about social justice and taking action for change. As a culminating project, the students write and revisepersuasive letters to raise public awareness about the issues they’ve examined.

Workshop 8. Social Justice and Action: Joseph Bruchac and Francisco JiménezThis program begins with profiles of the featured authors, then moves to Chicago, Illinois, where Lisa Espinosa’sseventh-grade students explore themes of representation through literature, documentary film, and photog-raphy. The students look critically at past and current media depictions of African Americans, Latino/as, and NativeAmericans, and examine ways in which artists and writers from within those cultural groups, including JosephBruchac and Francisco Jiménez, represent themselves. The students analyze the individual works, make compar-isons across texts, and make connections to their own lives. In a culminating project, they represent their ownexperience through black-and-white photography and personal essays. Teachers, family, and community mem-bers gather at a local coffeehouse for an exhibit of the students’ work.

About the Workshop, cont’d.


This guide provides everything you need to know to conduct this workshop, either with colleagues or on yourown. The workshop consists of activities carried out with your colleagues on-site (Workshop Sessions) and thoseto do on your own (Between Sessions). See Helpful Hints for Facilitators on p. 4 for more information on preparingfor group workshop sessions.

Workshop Sessions (On-Site)Weekly workshop sessions may be scheduled around live broadcasts; you should plan to begin at least 30 min-utes before the scheduled broadcast. You may prefer to pre-record the programs on videocassette and schedulethe sessions at a time that is convenient for all participants. Sessions work best when scheduled for a minimum oftwo hours. Before watching each video, you will engage in a pre-viewing discussion/activity related to the litera-ture. These activities are designed to immerse you in an experience of the literature that is analogous to the wayin which the students explore the literature in the video. Following each video, you will discuss the teachingstrategies highlighted in the unit.

Each session consists of three parts:

Getting Ready In preparation for watching the program, you will engage in approximately 30 minutes of discussion and activityrelated to the literature featured in the video.

Watch the Workshop VideoWatch the 60-minute video program.

Going FurtherWrap up the workshop with an additional 30 minutes of discussion and activity related to the featured teachingstrategies.

Between Sessions (On Your Own)

Homework AssignmentYou will be assigned readings and activities to review ideas presented in the workshop session just completed andto prepare you for the next one.

Ongoing ActivitiesThroughout the workshop, try incorporating the literature and strategies into your classroom instruction. To thinkabout, apply, and extend what you’ve learned:

Keep a JournalIn your journal, include thoughts, questions, and discoveries you have as you review the online materials andreflect on the workshop. Note how your participation in the workshop session influenced you as a learner andas a teacher.

Visit the Web Site: www.learner.org/channel/workshops/tmlGo online for materials and resources to deepen your understanding of the literature and the teaching prac-tices shown in the workshop.

Workshop Components


Use the Online ActivityThe Interactive Strategy Workbook is an activity on the Teaching Multicultural Literature Web site that offers youa chance to reflect on the teaching strategies covered in the workshop. The activity features poems by PaulaGunn Allen and Dwight Okita. Read them and consider how you might adapt the teaching strategies to thepoems and your students. Save your ideas in the workbook and return to the activity as you proceed throughthe workshop.

Share Ideas on Channel-TalkYou can subscribe to an email discussion list and communicate with other workshop participants online. Tosubscribe to Channel-talkmsmultilit, visit:

http://www.learner.org/mailman/listinfo/channel-talkmsmultilit

Helpful Hints for Facilitators

Successful Workshop SessionsThese guidelines will help you conduct successful workshop sessions, particularly the Getting Ready and GoingFurther segments. These 30-minute, pre- and post-video group discussions will help participants better under-stand the video programs and enhance the workshop experience. Getting Ready prepares participants to focuson the video programs; Going Further provides the opportunity to analyze and reflect on what they saw.

Designate ResponsibilitiesEach week, someone should be responsible for facilitating the workshop sessions. This may be a professional facil-itator or a volunteer from among the participants, or you may choose to divide and rotate duties among severalparticipants.

Prepare for the Session and Bring the Necessary MaterialsThe facilitator should review the entire workshop session in this guide, as well as the list of materials needed, priorto arriving for the session. (See p. 5 for the first session’s preparation; for all other sessions, see the HomeworkAssignment from the previous session.) The facilitator will be responsible for bringing enough materials for all theparticipants, or alerting them about materials they should bring and assignments they should have completed. Ifyou are viewing the programs on videocassette, the facilitator may want to preview them.

Workshop Components, cont’d.


Before the First SessionYou may want to photocopy this guide for all the participants so they can follow along, refer to ideas covered inthe session, and have their homework assignments handy. Or, you may direct them to the workshop Web site atwww.learner.org/channel/workshops/tml to print the guide themselves (direct them to Support Materials). Eitherway, you will want the participants to have the guide prior to the first session, so they will arrive prepared. Theyshould:

• Review the entire workshop reading list (in the Appendix; see Support Materials) and purchase therequired books or borrow them from the library.

• Go to the workshop Web site at www.learner.org/channel/workshops/tml.

• Read the Workshop 1 overview and information about the authors and literature (biographies, synopses,and key references).

• Read at least three of the following texts:

(Note: Those marked with an * are available online in the Workshop 1 Readings at www.learner.org/channel/workshops/tml; see Support Materials.)

• “I Want To Be Miss América” by Julia Alvarez

• “What Means Switch” by Gish Jen*

• “Family Ties: Exposing the Lighter Side of the Vietnamese American Experience” by Khoi Truong Luu*

• The Color of Water by James McBride

• “The All-American Slurp” by Lensey Namioka

• “Half-and-Half” by Naomi Shihab Nye*

• As you read, highlight or copy one or two quotations from each text that are meaningful to you. Recordany questions that come up.

• Bring your notes and copies of the Workshop 1 texts to the first workshop session.

Materials Needed

Participants are asked to read texts and online materials in preparation for each workshop session. A reading list,including ISBNs, is included with each workshop session in this guide. The entire reading list for all eight workshopsessions can be found in the Appendix. Some of the short works featured in the programs are available on theworkshop Web site (www.learner.org/channel/workshops/tml; see Support Materials, Workshop Readings). Seethe Homework Assignment for each workshop session to determine what works and/or texts participants willneed.

Helpful Hints for Facilitators, cont’d.


Classroom TeachersLaura Alvarez currently teaches a fifth-grade English/Spanish bilingual class at Melrose Elementary School inOakland, California, where she has taught fourth and fifth grade for four years. Through her research and ongoingclassroom inquiry, she is working to make her teaching practice more responsive to students’ academic and lin-guistic needs in both their primary and second languages. Prior to teaching, Alvarez worked for the Bay AreaCoalition of Essential Schools in Oakland.

Stanlee Brimberg teaches seventh-grade literacy and social studies at the Bank Street School for Children in NewYork City. In addition to teaching, Brimberg has developed curricula for the New York City Department of Education,created classroom resources for the Scribner Literature Series, and written lesson materials for several Web sites.Brimberg has also led teacher education workshops on creating curriculum using primary source materials.

Sally Brownfield has more than 20 years of classroom experience, including teaching at Hood Canal School inShelton, Washington. She recently taught courses on children’s literature to preservice teachers at WashingtonState University in Seattle. Brownfield currently provides consulting services to schools on Native American edu-cation. She is the author of Motivating Native American Students: Strategies That Work and The Children: A Child CareCurriculum for Young Native Americans.

Lisa Espinosa teaches language arts and science to seventh-graders at the Irma C. Ruiz School, a public school onthe south side of Chicago. Espinosa has published articles about her teaching in Rethinking Schools. Additionally,she has lectured at Northeastern University on teaching Mexican American students in urban schools. She hasreceived many awards and honors, including the Oppenheimer Grant for teaching, the Rochelle Lee Award, and anomination for the Golden Apple Award for excellence.

Laina Jones teaches sixth-grade humanities at The Harbor School, an Expeditionary Learning Outward BoundSchool in Dorchester, Massachusetts. She serves on The Harbor School Governing Board and is a Seeking EducationalEquity and Diversity (SEED) Leader. Jones also coaches the girls’ basketball team, codirects the Girls’ Rites of Passageprogram, and mentors students from her alma mater, the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Jones was nomi-nated for the Disney Teacher Award.

Akiko Morimoto teaches seventh- and eighth-grade English at Washington Middle School in Vista, California. Sheis a National Board for Professional Teaching Standards-certified teacher in Early Adolescence English LanguageArts. Morimoto currently serves as Vice President of the California Association of Teachers of English. She hasserved as the Middle Level Representative at Large on the Executive Committee of the National Council ofTeachers of English (NCTE) and cochaired two of NCTE’s national conventions.

Carol O’Donnell is a middle school English teacher and Outreach Director at Manhattan Country School, a K–8 inde-pendent school in New York City. O’Donnell has developed curricula founded on multiculturalism, social justice,academic and creative blossoming, and the richness of human identity. In addition, she has served as a Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity (SEED) leader and as cochair of the New York State Association of IndependentSchools Diversity Committee.

Kathryn Mitchell Pierce is a sixth-grade literacy and social studies teacher and a writing instructional supportspecialist at Wydown Middle School in Clayton, Missouri. A former multi-age primary teacher and university fac-ulty member, Pierce has published widely. Her research interests include the role of talk in supporting the learningprocess, the roles of literature in the curriculum, and the use of literature to promote critical conversations aboutissues of equity and social justice.

About the Contributors


Scholars/Teacher EducatorsJoseph Bruchac, Ph.D., received an M.A. in literature and creative writing from Syracuse University, and a Ph.D. incomparative literature from the Union Institute of Ohio. Bruchac is a writer and storyteller who often draws on tra-ditional Abenaki stories in his work. He has written and published over 100 books. Bruchac has volunteered as ateacher in Ghana, led writing workshops, and directed a college program in prisons. He has been a storyteller forNative American organizations and schools, including the Onondaga Nation School and the Institute of AlaskaNative Arts. Bruchac founded a literary magazine, The Greenfield Review, and codirects the Greenfield Review Literary Center and The Greenfield Review Press. His honors and awards include the National Endowment for theArts Writing Fellowship for Poetry, the Cherokee Nation Prose Award, the Hope S. Dean Award for NotableAchievement in Children’s Literature, the Native Writers Circle of the Americas Lifetime Achievement Award, andthe Virginia Hamilton Literary Award.

Patricia Enciso, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the College of Education and the Latino/a Studies ProgramCoordinator at Ohio State University, where she teaches graduate courses in “critically engaged reading,” multi-cultural literature, middle grade literacy methods, and Latino/a perspectives on critical theory, research, and prac-tice. As an assistant professor at the University of Wisconsin—Madison, Enciso developed research and teachingrelated to multicultural literature in education. Her research on children’s engaged reading and interpretations ofcultural knowledge has been published in Language Arts, Reading and Writing Quarterly, English Education, TheHandbook of Research on Teaching the English Language Arts, and Making Race Visible: Literacy Research for CulturalUnderstanding. She coedited Theory Into Practice, “Already Reading: Children, Texts and Contexts,” and New Directions in Sociocultural Theory: Power, Identity and Agency. She has served as the chair of the Américas AwardCommittee for Latino/a children’s literature and has coedited a regular review of children’s literature for The NewAdvocate. Enciso was awarded a Spencer Postdoctoral Fellowship for work on the sociocultural landscapes of chil-dren’s relationships, reading, and cultural knowledge.

Jerome C. Harste, Ph.D., is professor of language education at Indiana University, and has the distinction of beingthe first Martha Lea and Bill Armstrong Chair in Teacher Education. A strong advocate of classroom-basedresearch, Harste has been working with teachers over multiple years in an effort to collaboratively create the mostconducive classroom environments possible for literacy learning. As the result of this work, he has become aspokesperson for literature-based teaching, inquiry-based education, critical literacy, and multiple ways ofknowing curriculum. Harste has authored or coauthored numerous professional publications, including BeyondReading and Writing: Inquiry, Curriculum, and Multiple Ways of Knowing; Supporting Critical Conversations in Classrooms; and Creating Classrooms for Authors: The Reading–Writing Connection. He is a children’s author as wellas the past president of the National Conference on Research in Language and Literacy, the National Reading Conference, the Whole Language Umbrella, and the National Council of Teachers of English.

Valerie Felita Kinloch, Ph.D., is assistant professor of English education at Teachers College, Columbia University.Prior to this appointment, she was assistant professor of English, composition, and rhetoric at the University ofHouston—Downtown. Her most recent work investigates democratic engagements, literacy practices, writingconventions/moves, and spatial affiliation in the education of diverse student populations. She is currentlyworking on an educational biography on the life and literary contributions of scholar–activist–poet June Jordan.Kinloch coedited Still Seeking an Attitude: Critical Reflections on the Work of June Jordan, a collection of criticalessays. Her writings have appeared in Word, English Education, JAC (A Journal of Composition Theory),Developmental Education and Urban Literacy Monograph, The Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance, and CollegeComposition & Communication journal.

Peggy McIntosh, Ph.D., is Associate Director of the Wellesley College Center for Research on Women and Founderand Codirector of the United States SEED (Seeking Educational Equity and Diversity) Project on Inclusive Curriculum. She consults widely with college and school faculty who want to create gender-fair and multiculturalcurricula, teaching methods, and school climates. In 1988, she published the groundbreaking article, “White Privilege and Male Privilege: A Personal Account of Coming to See Correspondences Through Work in Women’sStudies.” McIntosh has taught at the Brearley School, Harvard University, Trinity College (Washington, D.C.), theUniversity of Denver, the University of Durham (England), and Wellesley College. She is a cofounder of the RockyMountain Women’s Institute, and has been consulting editor to SAGE: A Scholarly Journal on Black Women. In addi-

About the Contributors, cont’d.


tion to having two honorary degrees, she is a recipient of the Klingenstein Award for Distinguished EducationalLeadership from Columbia University Teachers College.

Sonia Nieto, Ph.D., is professor of language, literacy, and culture in the School of Education, University of Massachusetts, Amherst. She has taught students at all levels from elementary grades through graduate school,and for the past 30 years has focused on preparing teachers and teacher educators. Her research focuses on mul-ticultural education and on the education of Latino/as, immigrants, and students of diverse cultural and linguisticbackgrounds. Her books include Affirming Diversity: The Sociopolitical Context of Multicultural Education; The Lightin Their Eyes: Creating Multicultural Learning Communities; Puerto Rican Students in U.S. Schools; and What KeepsTeachers Going?; and she has published dozens of book chapters and articles in such journals as Educational Leadership, The Harvard Educational Review, Multicultural Education, and Theory Into Practice. She serves on severalnational advisory boards that focus on educational equity and social justice, including Facing History and Ourselves (FHAO) and Educators for Social Responsibility (ESR). She has received numerous awards for scholar-ship, advocacy, and activism, including the Outstanding Educator award from the National Council of Teachers ofEnglish (NCTE). Nieto was an Annenberg Institute Senior Fellow and has received two honorary doctorates.

Tonya Perry works at the University of Alabama at Birmingham as an instructor in secondary English languagearts (grades 6–12). She taught middle school for 10 years and worked with high school students in various instruc-tional capacities. Perry was awarded the Alabama State Teacher of the Year title in 2000–2001 and progressed toone of the four finalists for National Teacher of the Year. She has served on the National Council of Teachers of English Executive Board as the Middle School Representative-at-Large and writes a column for English Journal, aNational Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) periodical. She is also a National Board-certified teacher.

Lead Content AdvisorsDale Allender is the Associate Executive Director of the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). He alsodirects NCTE’s West Coast office, located on the campus of the University of California, Berkeley, where he teachescoursework in multicultural literature at the Graduate School of Education. Allender’s scholarship includes workin multicultural literature, media literacy, and cultural studies. He serves on advisory boards for a variety of organ-izations, including Media Rights, The Independent Film Channel/Film School project, Scenarios, the Anti-Defamation League, and the Oakland Museum of California. Allender has served as lead advisor or advisory boardmember for several Annenberg/CPB professional development workshops for English language arts educators.

Beverly Ann Chin, Ph.D., is Professor of English; Director, English Teaching Program; and former Director,Montana Writing Project at the University of Montana, Missoula. She has served as President of the NationalCouncil of Teachers of English (NCTE), board member of the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards(NBPTS), and Secretary of the Conference on English Education (CEE). Currently, she is Member-at-Large of theConference on English Leadership (CEL) and a member of the Assessment Advisory Committee of the NorthwestRegional Educational Laboratory (NWREL). A former high school English teacher, Chin has written articles andbooks on the teaching of reading and writing. In addition, she has edited and served as program advisor for sev-eral books on multicultural literature, including Asian American Literature, Native American Literature, HispanicAmerican Literature, and African American Literature, published by Glencoe/McGraw Hill; Chinese-American Literature, published by Globe; and Dictionary of Characters in Children’s Literature, published by Franklin Watts. Sheprovided commentary for the Annenberg/CPB workshop The Expanding Canon: Teaching Multicultural Literature inHigh School. A frequent keynote speaker and workshop presenter, Chin travels nationally and internationally towork with educators and students on English language arts standards, curriculum, instruction, and assessment.She has received numerous awards for her teaching and service.



Advisory BoardKylene Beers, Ed.D.Senior Reading Researcher, School Development

Program, Yale University Editor, Voices From the Middle

Maisha Tulivu Fisher, Ph.D.Assistant Professor, Division of Educational Studies,

Emory University

Nina L. FloroProfessor of English, Skyline College

Paula J. Hale, Ed.D.Field Director Southern Pueblos, Nevado,

North Dakota, Save the Children Federation

Violet Harris, Ph.D.Professor and Head, Curriculum and Instruction,

University of Illinois

Nicolás Kanellos, Ph.D.Brown Foundation Professor of Spanish, University of

HoustonDirector, Arte Público Press

Valerie Kinloch, Ph.D.Assistant Professor of English Education, Teachers

College, Columbia University

Amanda LifschultzTeacher, East Side Middle School, New York, N.Y.

Pat MoraWriter

Michael Pavel, Ph.D.Associate Professor, Department of Educational

Leadership and Counseling Psychology, College of Education, Washington State University

Tonya PerryInstructor, University of Alabama at Birmingham

Cheryl WilsonTeacher, Louis Armstrong Middle School, East

Elmhurst, N.Y.


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